Former Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta
For most people, the former Minister of Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, was the biggest casualty in President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo's recent reshuffle on February 14, 2024.
The much-anticipated reshuffle by the president since he assumed office in 2017 saw the likes of Kwaku Agyemang Manu of the Ministry of Health and Kwasi Amoako-Attah of the Ministry of Roads and Highways relieved of their duties.
Other affected ministers included the Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, who has moved to the Ministry of Works and Housing, and Kwaku Agyemang Manu, among others.
In the case of Ken Ofori-Atta, many had long wished the president would get rid of him because of how he managed the economy as sector minister.
Surprisingly, this list of people included members of his party, the New Patriotic Party (NPP).
Members of the Majority side of Parliament on November 17, 2022, threatened the president to either sack the finance minister or, as MPs, they would boycott any governmental business involving Ken Ofori-Atta.
The group, which was made up of about ninety-eight NPP MPs, in a press statement, asked the president to do away with the finance minister or they would not sit in Parliament for the 2023 budget statement.
Read the full details of the story, which was first published by peacefmonline.com and then on GhanaWeb on Thursday, November 17, 2022, below:
Ninety-eight(98) New Patriotic Party (NPP) Members of Parliament reignited calls for Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta to be axed.
They have threatened to boycott the upcoming 2023 budget presentation and all Finance Ministry business should the president refuse to sack him immediately.
It may be recalled that over 80 MPs held a press conference on Tuesday, October 25, to demand that Ken Ofori-Atta and Charles Adu Boahen be sacked from their respective roles.
This led to a meeting with President Akufo-Addo, where he requested that the Finance Minister be allowed to conclude the IMF talks and present the 2023 budget statement.
Charles Adu Boahen has since been sacked by President Akufo-Addo after the latest investigative piece by ace Investigative Journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas implicated him.
Majority call
Subsequently, the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, indicated that the call for the Finance Minister to be axed was from the entire Majority caucus.
"Even though the issue started with a group of 80-plus, the caucus meeting aligned with the decision of that group. So, it is no longer the cause of the 80-plus group. It is the agenda for the entire caucus," Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu told Journalists in Parliament.
However, the NPP MPs seem to have changed their minds about allowing the Finance Minister to present the budget statement. They want Ken Ofori-Atta gone immediately.
No Turning Back
The Member of Parliament for Asante Akyem North, Andy Appiah-Kubi, who doubles as Spokesperson for the group, speaking in an interview on Peace FM's morning show 'Kokrokoo' said, "We are not only going to boycott the budget presentation, we are also not going to be part of any business done through him, and that is our position now".
"Yes, we are not part of the vote of censure . . . we want him gone, but by using a better approach, and that is what we're doing . . . indeed we agreed to the president's request to wait but analyzing various public statements, especially from Ofori-Atta, it shows disrespect. It gives the impression that the president has no plan to dismiss him even after the budget presentation, and so we've changed our mind; his dismissal should be now," he insisted.
The Asante Akyem North MP has further assured that they won't change their stand even if the president calls for another meeting.
"I can assure you that our current position won't be changed," he added.
Meanwhile, the Finance Minister is now facing a vote of censure from the Minority side of Parliament.
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